DO YOU EXPRESS ‘YOUR TRUE SELF’?
What does it mean to fully express yourself? The absolute truth of who you are – your authentic self. What would it take for you to be totally vulnerable, open and honest?
Have you ever played full out? Been all parts of you without judgement from yourself or concern about judgement from others. I have no doubt that all of us have had moments or times in our lives when we have. So what stops us from being that ‘warts and all’ human being on a more regular basis or even a continual basis? What is the one thing that keeps us being totally ‘naked’ in the midst of the world around us.
Self expression is an essential part of being your authentic self. We often have to go through long periods in our lives where we are not doing this to realize just how important it is to our overall well-being. Depending on our experiences, beliefs, values, stories, our upbringing and the amount of ‘inner work’ we have done some of us are good at it and some of us downright suck.
Some of us get to a time and space in our lives where we have accepted ourselves warts and all…..although we do own a variety of masks or hats that we take on or leave off depending on where we are or who we are with. We use these to make us feel safe, protected, smart, funny, or for attention (positive or negative), or simply because it is appropriate and for many other reasons. We also use them depending on our state of mind and this is ok. We often love parts of ourselves and some more than others. some not at all. Learning to love all the parts, the dark and light sides of YOU and being grateful for the contrast will help lead to self-acceptance and self-love which in turn will support self expression.
So why do we often find it difficult and why is it we ‘hold back’. There are many reasons and some of them are totally appropriate and legitimate. At times we hold back because of fear. Fear of not finding the right words (whatever they may be). Fear of sounding silly, fear of being judged, fear of telling a lie, fear of being too honest (is there such a thing), fear of hurting others – nb – you only ever eventually end up hurting yourself if you bury the emotions attached to this situation so it is really important to have an outlet (personal or professional) to express your hurt. Is it only fear that is the main instigator that holds us back? Some people hold back simply to keep the peace. They may not be comfortable with forthright communication and shy away from communicating their true feelings because of their fear of conflict arising. There’s that word fear again. This can be ok for some providing you have a very good filter system and are able to work on another level of self to dissolve the conflict or if you are very good at not owning someone else’s stuff. At times the best response is to simply not buy into it and not respond. For many reasons we hold back. Some of these reasons will hurt us and some will heal us?
What would it take for you to choose to fully express yourself?
The key is to be discerning enough to know when to and when not to. Here we need to become the ‘observer’ of ourselves – our own personal witness of the constant barrage of events, situations and people that cross our paths giving us the opportunity to learn more about ourselves. We have to take more self responsibility. Maybe we have to learn new language techniques to support our expression. Learning about your personality type will help support you in your journey of self expression. There is inner work involved, of course. You don’t get off lightly. However, the rewards are a more energy, fun-filled, joyful, expressive, lovable, YOU.
Would those around you need to change? If so, that would be like waiting for hell to freeze over. Good Luck as this attitude is a very long road to nowhere! Sometimes it will take a crisis for us to get our act together or do some things differently or to not do some things at all for that matter. It’s these times in our lives that are our real ‘growth periods’ hence why yes it will often feel very uncomfortable. We usually don’t see it coming but there are certainly signs along the way. We often choose to learn through pain and suffering. Whilst this is not ideal it can be the case.
Realizing ‘if it’s to be – it’s up to me’ and deciding to do the inner work is the difference. Taking responsibility for our own thoughts, feelings and actions is an essential start to expressing yourself authentically. Self-inquiry is imperative. Be kind to yourself during this process by not taking yourself too personally or too seriously. Whether we acknowledge it or not we are all supported by a trusted source higher than ourselves, so now is a good time to call on this support. Put it out there to the Universe, God, Divine Inspiration (whoever it is you choose) and ASK ‘show me the next step’ or ask for ‘right-mindedness’ in this situation. Hand it over to your trusted source and allow the outcome to be revealed. Lastly, continue to love and forgive yourself and others. Quantum Forgiveness will bring you more peace and closer to the essence of who you are than you ever could imagine.
In the meantime, whilst all this is going on in an attempt to break down those blocks it is wise to introduce different forms of expression into your daily life. Playing, laughing, dancing, music, painting, being creative, exploring , writing, singing, speaking, being physical – all of these will help you find balance in your daily life. Set an intention to start now and find what structure you will need to make it work for you.
Imagine!!!!? If you had unlimited talent, unlimited courage, wisdom and the freedom to be all you could be and if you could stand in the innocence of who you are, in your absolute greatness, how would you express yourself?. Who would you be without the roadblocks. Peel away everything that isn’t you and let your true essence shine. Delight in your own wonder and exuberance. Choose to live ‘in the now’ moment more and more and Trust that if you choose to be true to yourself life will unfold joyously, graciously and miraculously. How does it get any better than this?………